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-What is the California and Arizona Preliminary Notice (1:50)?
Generally, a Preliminary Notice is required to be sent at the beginning of every job in California and Arizona in order to preserve lien rights. The Preliminary Notice primarily is a visibility document; it's supposed to let other people know who you are and what you’re doing on the job site, and how to get ahold of you. The people who are required to receive these Preliminary Notices really rely on these Preliminary Notices to paint a picture of all of the parties that are working on the project, because it makes it much easier for them to facilitate a smoother payment on the job. The second purpose here is reducing risks for the owner, the general contractor or the lender and any other parties involved with payment and avoid surprises and liens on their project.
-If I don't send a Preliminary Notice, can I still file a lien if I'm not paid in California or Arizona? (6:11)
In California and Arizona, the law requires that a preliminary 20 day notice must be sent by every person who furnishes labor professional services or materials to a project as a mandatory prerequisite to filing a valid mechanics lien, unless you’re a wage labor on a construction project.
-Who needs to send Preliminary Notices in California and Arizona? (7:03)
In California and Arizona, everyone needs to send Preliminary Notices; the only exception here is if you are a wage labor. In California and Arizona, if you are not contracted directly with the property owner, you are going to be required to send this Preliminary Notice to the general contractor, the owner and the lender if there is one. If you are a general contractor contracted directly with the property owner in California, the Preliminary Notice only has to go to the lender if there is one. In Arizona, the Preliminary Notice has to go to the owner and the lender.
-What if I can’t find the information of the parties I need to send my Preliminary Notice to in California and Arizona? (8:54)
It is common practice in California and Arizona to request pre-lien information. There is a chance that your request for information go unanswered. Typically the best thing you can do is to keep a paper trail and demonstrate that you did try your best to formally request this information and research who the parties are.
-When do I need to send my Preliminary Notices in California and Arizona? (11:09)
In California and Arizona, anyone who is required to send the Preliminary Notice has the same deadline to send it: it is 20 days from the start of the job.
-Can I send my Preliminary Notice early or late in California and Arizona? (11:31)
The answer is yes to both of those. Sending a Preliminary Notice before you arrive onsite is still valid. If you've missed the first 20 day window and you forgot to send the Preliminary Notice, you can still send that Preliminary Notice and it will preserve your lien rights on anything furnished in the last 20 days and anything moving forward on the job.
-When is the Preliminary Notice requirement considered satisfied in California and Arizona? (12:47)
In California and Arizona, the requirement to send a Preliminary Notice is fulfilled upon mailing; the actual delivery is not required within the period.
-Do I need to send an amended Preliminary Notice if the estimated total price is exceeded or changes? (14:36)
The answer in California is no. One Preliminary Notice is sufficient in California and California does not require amended or supplemental Preliminary Notices.
In Arizona, there’s the 20% rule, which means that if the value of your work exceeds the original estimated total contract amount listed on your first Preliminary Notice by 20%, then you need to send a second amended Preliminary Notice with an updated contract amount listed. An important thing to note is that Arizona recently passed a law in May of 2019 to increase the threshold for amended notices from 20 to 30%, which is going into action in Dec. 2019.
-How do I start sending Preliminary Notices on all of my jobs? (17:35)
With an account with Levelset, as soon as you give us the project information and the dates you begin working, we will tell you what is required and when it is required.
Over 500,000 contractors and suppliers connect on Levelset’s cloud-based platform to make payment processes stress-free. Users easily exchange payment documents like Lien Waivers, Pay Applications, and Preliminary Notices, they see a complete picture of who is on their job, and are empowered with the resources and knowledge they need to be confident in payment. For more information about Levelset, visit [ Ссылка ] or call 866-720-5436.
